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Ben Holcomb
Ben Holcomb
Ben Holcomb is the director of choirs at Washburn Rural High School in Topeka, KS.
The WRHS Choirs, under his direction, have been invited to perform at the 2024 KMEA Inservice workshop. In 2021, Mr. Holcomb worked with his colleagues to form the Voces Amicis choral ensemble, which has since enjoyed strong concert seasons including a performance at the Georgia ACDA 2022 inservice workshop. Mr. Holcomb has previously held musical director positions at Eastminster Presbyterian Church in Stone Mountain, GA and in the Atlanta Homeward Choir.
Mr. Holcomb has also worked heavily with and arranged for a variety of contemporary a cappella ensembles. In 2019 his A Cappella Group, the Belmont Pitchmen, were International Championship of Collegiate A Cappella finalists. Since then, he has remained active as an arranger for both collegiate and high school a cappella groups.
Prior to his position at WRHS, he earned his Master's in Choral Conducting from Georgia State University and his Bachelor's of Music in Music Theory from Belmont University. Outside of work, Mr. Holcomb enjoys finding good places to eat, spending time with close friends, and staying active.
Contact:
Email: holcotho@usd437.net
Office Phone: 785-339-4161
Samuel Messick
Samuel Messick
Sam Messick is the newly appointed assistant director of choirs at Washburn Rural High School.
He graduated with a Bachelor’s degree in choral music education from the University of Arkansas in the Spring of 2026. At the University of Arkansas he performed a diverse range of vocal music, singing in several ensembles including the Schola Cantorum, Inspirational Choral gospel choir, and the VOICES jazz ensemble.
Mr. Messick is an active member of ACDA (American Choral Directors Association), including assisting the University of Arkansas student chapter of ACDA, helping them travel to conferences and plan several events.
Mr. Messick is incredibly excited to begin his journey as an educator at Washburn Rural High School. Besides teaching, he loves to travel, play board games, and spend time with family.
Contact:
Email: messisam@usd437.net
Office Phone: 785-339-4222
Qiyao Marcus
Qiyao Marcus
Qiyao Marcus is an active musician, performing regularly with choirs, musicals, and soloists throughout Kansas. She currently accompanies for Washburn Rural High School Choirs and Washburn University Music and Theater Departments. She has served as principal harpist for Washburn University Symphony Orchestra. Marcus studied with James Rivers and Julie Rivers while earning her Bachelor of Music degree in Piano Performance at Washburn University. In her free time, Qiyao Enjoys learning new musical instruments, crocheting, baking and playing piano duets with her family and friends.
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